1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to data communications systems, and more particularly to systems and methods for allowing businesses to exchange intellectual capital. In one example, a plurality of companies may establish and participate in a collaborative network, which enables them to identify, access, and disseminate information regarding human assets.
2. Description of the Related Art
An accepted measure of business performance is shareholder value. A primary determinant of this value is a company's ability to optimize its use of tangible and intangible assets. Often, a great deal of focus and effort is placed on increasing the productivity of tangible assets. These efforts typically include streamlining current business processes to accrue greater efficiencies and reduce redundancies.
However, the true potential for growth of shareholder value lies not in further focus on the tangible assets, but in the successful management and employment of intangible assets. Intangible assets, or intellectual capital, may include experience, resources, people (human capital), etc. Intangible assets may provide the basis for organizational renewal and sustainable competitive advantage.
Currently, the corporate landscape is in a state of flux. A “New Economy” is emerging, bringing about increased global activity marked by sustained deflationary pressures and continuous innovation. Technology and tangible assets enable this global activity. However, a firm's intangible assets are the key production factor for innovation and success. A firm's failure to leverage these intangible assets may result in declining performance of many well-established firms. In the new economy, the ability to generate increasing economic returns from managed competencies will be essential to a firm's ability to sustain and increase its value.
To cope with these pressures, firms are typically investing in three discrete areas. Human Capital Management (“HCM”) for people, Alliance Management (“AM”) for partners, and Knowledge Management (“KM”) for information. These functional areas are usually autonomous units having different objectives and goals. Generally, HCM is tasked with employee recruiting, development, and retention. Alliance Management involves the establishment and cultivation of relationships with business partners, while KM focuses on extracting enterprise information and sharing it within the organization. Although these areas are viewed as independent entities, they are bound by a common thread: the focus on intangible assets. Accordingly, it may be beneficial to bring the core tenets of HCM, AM, and KM together.
Further, given the importance of intangible assets and the difficulty of maintaining self-sufficiency in an environment that demands strategic focus, flexibility, and innovation, it may be beneficial to enable a group of alliance firms to manage and share intellectual capital, especially human capital. That is, increased value may be achieved by enabling a group of organizations to exchange their employees' intellectual capabilities. Enabling firms to effectively leverage and exchange skills, competencies, and resources with alliances may generate enhanced economic returns resulting in increased value.